wipster
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Posts posted by wipster
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Thanks for the info on Phil and Bob Mookie. I felt good about the transaction after talking with Phil, he did go out of his way to make the pricing pretty reasonable, plus he answered all my questions about the speakers honestly (at least I think so). And yes, as Tom Petty said, waiting is the hardest part! In fact, I recently bought both Petty's new one and the soundtrack he did for "She's The One" on vinyl and as good as they sound on the Heresy's, I can't wait to hear my 50 watt Eicos make them sing through the Belles!
Anybody need some nice Fortes? They have titanium tweeters and midranges...
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Judging by your Seahawk cap, your Belle's have a long ride from Maumelle AR! Curious to hear your comments on the AB2 from Bob. I chose the 4500 hz crossover with the CT 125 tweeter to update my Belles and loved it. The cost for the two xovers plus tweeter was about the same as the new AB2 so I went that direction since I got new tweeters with that mix. I trust you will like your Belles as much as I do mine.Just for shiites and sunnis, here's the Belles I just bought (you might have seen them on eBay):
Thanks Mookie! Yeah, long expensive ride... just hoping UPS Ground and Craters and Freighters get them here safe (and I'm sure they will). I considered upgrading the tweeters and going the A/4500 route, but decided to go with the AB2's because it's a little gentler on my wallet, which has taken quite a beating lately, and I really didn't want to change the tweeters since I haven't even heard them yet! I will keep you posted as to how they sound compared to the AB networks that they currently have. I could have waited a while, but AB's aren't very well thought of and I figure after 28 years, they probably deserve to retire anyway.
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Coffee AND tea machine here. I drink mine mulatto, no sugar.
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Schu,
I have the exact same coffee maker, drink my coffee the same as well (Gevalia Pumpkin... yummy), at least 2 cups a day... natural speed!
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Just for shiites and sunnis, here's the Belles I just bought (you might have seen them on eBay):
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Just so you can see how close we are, here's a quick pic of my current set up:
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Musicook,
Congrats on the Belles! They look great and I'm sure sound even better. Believe or don't, I'm in a very similar situation as you in that I bought a pair of '87 Belles (Oiled Oak with cane grills... my mouth is watering just talking about them) last week that should be delivered next week. Currently, I'm using my '75 Heresy's for two channel audio with a Micro Seiki DD-40 table and Eico preamp and amps, and for video, digital, and surround sound needs, I use a pair of '87 Fortes with an Academy center (makes a really nice soundstage IMHO) and 4 KG1.5's for surround with two KSW200 subs, powered by an Onkyo SR805 receiver. I've got dedicated switches for both of the front speakers and the amps (I just have to remember which switch is switched at times... hell to get old). This is all in an 18' x 18' room, so because of size restrictions, I am also planning to use just the Belles for all purposes.
Since you're already set up in virtually the same manner mine will be, I've just a couple questions, mainly how do you feel the Academy matches with the Belles in sound "equality" (don't really know what to call it, but the reason I got the Academy is that it was made to match the Fortes... kind of at least... and it matches up really well with them)? Because they're both heritage speakers and have tweeters and midranges that are close, I'm thinking that a Heresy might be superior as a center for use with the Belles. My only problem is I have the Academy in the same stand my Vizio M701 sits on and the hole it's in is 1/2" too small for a Heresy! If the Heresy is a better fit sonically, I may have BluesBoy build a custom one for me... same guts but slightly different cabinet. However, if the Academy matches up, it may not be necessary... I look forward to hearing your opinion.
Second question, I notice you have wheels on your Belles... at 125 lbs each, I can understand why! I was considering doing the same even before I saw your post, but was concerned if you noticed any difference in performance not having them directly on the floor? I would expect it would be similar to your LaScalas...
Anyway, congratulations again! I'll keep you posted when I get mine in house (no small task in itself, thank goodness I have strong friends who like beer!). FYI, I also ordered a pair of AB-2's from Bob Crites today, and we plan on replacing one at a time and doing some A/B tests in mono to see how much of a difference there is.
Stay cool and have another!
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Steve,
If you're ever over to the real East side (by that I mean NOT Bellevue), give me a ring... I would love to have you listen to my Eico's playing the newly remastered SRV albums on my Micro Seiki DD-40 (MA-505 tonearm with a Stanton 881 cartridge) through my H1 Heresys (rebuilt with Crites caps and the '74 PWK mod)... you would melt. It would sound fantastic running through your LaScalas (and my KHorns when BluesBoy rebuilds the crossovers this weekend).
I've been collecting albums since '75 (when I learned how to properly take care of them) and various digital media since the mid-80's. Until a couple years ago, everything was played through SS equipment. But since a divorce (amicable) and an unexpected early retirement (due to health issues), I had the EICO equipment rebuilt (inherited from a father-in-law who passed away before I could meet him) and I got to tell you, I have NEVER heard music sound better. I must admit, I probably still listen to digital played through SS more often, but that's for convenience sake only... with the possible exception of SACD's and BR's, the warmth of a well recorded LP played through Heritage Klipsch via a good tube amp cannot be beat IMHO, but you need to hear it yourself before you venture off into that realm. If you were closer, I have a spare system I would loan you, but 200 miles is a wee bit too far.
Anyway my advice is to listen to someone who has a decent tube system and can guide you in the right direction before making the plunge... it's your ears that will be listening, so they need to be happy!
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Hey Steve,
Long time no talk to... LOL! Are you spinning vinyl or running CD's, SACD's, or other digital sources? I just ask because vinyl through tube amps into heritage Klipschs sounds awesome. I've got an Eico HF-85 pre and 2 HF-50 amps and the vinyl sounds so much better running through my Heresy's vs my Forte I's it's surprising, yet all the digital (CD, Flac, etc.) sounds better running through my Onkyo TX-SR806 into the Fortes... we spent an afternoon blind testing and all three Klipschnuts listening agreed... weird huh?
Just food for thought!
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Agree with your list (except maybe Robbie Robertson), but would add:
- John Hiatt
- Peter Case
- McKinley Morganfield (Muddy Waters)
- Willie Dixon
- Dave Alvin
- Kris Kristofferson
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Over 3 years and still nothing new to perfectly match a F ll, except another F ll.
C7 and a Academy and Quartet is as close as you can get.
I doubt that Klipsch is planning to make a matching center for Fortes now anyway ;-)...
One change since I last posted, I did put the Crites titanium tweeter diaphragms in the Fortes and the Academy (along with titanium midranges for the Fortes... had to buy them from Klipsch, pricey but worth it IMHO) and the front sound stage matching is even better than before... pretty close to seamless, plus they sound way better (both SS and stereo), especially if you don't toe the Fortes very much, if at all.
Going to watch and listen to "The Avengers" in 3D tonight, I anticipate an awesome audio and visual experience! (I was going to say orgasmic, but I thought that might be too graphic... LOL)
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wipster I don't know if you have read any of the Avenger comics but the purple stone faced guy at the end is a major bad *** called Thanos. He killed off half the population of the universe because he worships death, of course the Avengers saved the day!
I am sure the next Avengers movie will take things to the next level with Thanos involved!
jbsl, thanks for the heads up... I was really into the Avengers, but back around 1965-70, and I've killed way too many brain cells in the interim to remember any of the plots. From the article in wikipedia, sounds like he'll be an awesome opponent... from what I read, even the dialog used during this ending was well chosen and the reason for his smile.
I kept most of my comics in pretty good shape, but unfortunately had to sell them all to get by during a six month long strike back in the early 80's... did me pretty well though, even back then I got over a thousand bucks from two record storage boxes worth, both Marvel and DC (Marvel was my favorite). I had the second Incredible Hulk, back when he was gray, and that was worth a bunch. While I wish I still had them, as they would be worth easily 10 times as much now, they sure helped me get out of bind back then.
My favorite scene is when Hulk says "Puny God" while beating the living daylight out of Loki.
Neo, I agree, I laughed my *** off, especially with all the crap Loki was saying to Hulk right before. The dialog in this movie was excellent... Scarlett got off a couple good ones as well!
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Saw the Avengers today and it was the best super hero movie so far
. As usual stay thru the credits for the extra clips.When this comes out on Blue ray it should look and sound outstanding!
We saw it earlier in the week at a matinee (nice to be retired), and yours is the same exact statement I've been making to all of my friends as well. Josh Whedon did a great job directing and the actors, script, CGI, plot, you name it was excellent. While we saw it in 2D (I hate wearing the glasses over my glasses), it was quite obvious is was made for 3D. My best friend will have his man cave done with an Epson 5010E3D projector installed and three Cornwalls across the frony in the near future, so you can bet your *** the BluRay of this will defintely be shown as soon as it comes out... it should look even more fantastic with a few brewskis, in leather recliners, and a little "worry be gone!"
I did kind of feel that it was a bit Iron Man focused, but then again, Tony Stark does kind of command the room. The Hulk was awesome, especially the scene with Loki... loved it!
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Is there any truth to the Internet rumor that Don Ells machined the video camera? He's an amazing craftsman and engineer.
Actually Bluesboy created the video camera body and gearing out of an unspecified hardwood, while his father, Bluesman, turned some crystal on his lathe to make the lenses... it's powered by a small wind turbine and the recording was captured on film made from hemp, so if they're ever audited, they can smoke the evidence...
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Wipster-
Thank you for the link.
No worries Neil, thank Don's Dad for the video, he took it all himself about 4 years ago, pretty cool.
I can't wait for the sequel, "Dad's Engines, The Search for the Revenge of the Ghost Protocol."
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Might want to take a look at the NewEgg website, they've got most of their Onkyo receivers on sale and there are several fine receivers you can pick up for around $500, such as the TX-NR609 or the HT-RC370 (THX certified). The SR805 I purchased refurbished a few years ago (to replace a not bad Sony) was one of the best investments I ever made, really made my Fortes sing.
Of course, if you have the chance, go to an A/V store and listen to what you're thinking of buying first, in as close to your setup as possible... there's no substitute for your own ears.
Happy hunting!
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While we were moving things around to properly place the the Heresy's, we decided to do a
blind A/B comparison between the two speaker pairs. I had a spare speaker switch (I save everything... I think I have the first patch cord I ever bought), so we were able to easily switch between the speakers without the listener knowing which speakers they were listening to. While both speaker pairs sounded great, it was obvious to the three of the people listening (all Klipschoholics) that the Heresy's clearly sounded
the best of the two with vinyl and the Fortes clearly sounded the best with CD’s
and digital feeds, all with the same amplification (the tube system)... almost like they were
designed that way and maybe they were? I know when I first heard the Fortes, a CD was used, and obviously an LP was spinning when I first heard my Heresy's. Even though we were using tube amplication for this test, I would bet money that the Heresy's sound better using tubes and the Fortes would sound the better of the two using solid state (note I did not say they would sound better using solid state because when I was using the Fortes both both amps, they sounded better using the Eico's as well, even though the Onkyo is a great sounding SS amp).
Thought I would share, as this experiment was a lot of fun, with some definite conclusions about heritage speakers and analog v SS at least.
The only flaw in the experiment that you outlined is that you didn't state whether you level matched when switching between speakers. Without that, it's almost impossible to draw definite conclusions.
We considered if level matching would be necessary, but honestly there was not enough difference between the efficiency of the Fortes (98 dB) and the Heresy's (96 dB) to make a difference, at least one that we could distinguish. At very high levels you could discern a slight difference in volume, but that's not why we were comparing the speakers... we wanted to see how different the tonal quality was, and it was a learning experience, as there was more than we anticipated.
If I were doing a blind A/B comparison for Stereophile, I'm sure I would have all the proper equipment to perform proper level matching; however, we were just three guys having fun and we more than accomplished our goal, flaws and all.
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I use tubes because of a concept I learned a great deal about on this forum: The concept of MATCHING.
It starts with the speakers. Heritage Klipsch were designed in an era where tubes were the norm, so I think it's a natural fit to use tubes on Heritage today. My listening tests bear this out, to my ears anyway. <...>
A Nectar,
It's interesting that you brought this up, as we just did an experiment that kind of validates your concept, if only from an analog v digital perspective. I recently rebuilt the crossovers on my 1975 Heresy's, definitely a heritage speaker. As they have been rode hard and put away wet many times in their 35 plus years (I had relegated them to garage and wedding reception duty), we also refinished the Walnut veneers, built new risers, and
changed the polarities per the “Dope From Hope” issued 36 years ago (these had
Type D crossovers). When we powered them up, using a Scott LK-48 for power and listening to Petty's "Damn the Torpedos" on vinyl, we were absolutely blown away at how good they sounded... unbelievable improvement!
Anyway, I was so impressed that I decided to bring them in to the great room, specifically to be the dedicated speakers for the separate tube-based system for listening to vinyl and SACD's I had recently put tgether(Eico HF-85 pre and 2 HF-50 mono amps). My home theatre system uses Fortes for the main speakers with an Onkyo SR805 and I had been using a Niles amp switcher to use the Fortes for both systems. I've always considered the Fortes to be the second generation of heritage speakers, as they came out about the same time as the CD emerged and have a more modern look, as well as a spectacular sound.
While we were moving things around to properly place the the Heresy's, we decided to do a
blind A/B comparison between the two speaker pairs. I had a spare speaker switch (I save everything... I think I have the first patch cord I ever bought), so we were able to easily switch between the speakers without the listener knowing which speakers they were listening to. While both speaker pairs sounded great, it was obvious to the three of the people listening (all Klipschoholics) that the Heresy's clearly sounded
the best of the two with vinyl and the Fortes clearly sounded the best with CD’s
and digital feeds, all with the same amplification (the tube system)... almost like they were
designed that way and maybe they were? I know when I first heard the Fortes, a CD was used, and obviously an LP was spinning when I first heard my Heresy's. Even though we were using tube amplication for this test, I would bet money that the Heresy's sound better using tubes and the Fortes would sound the better of the two using solid state (note I did not say they would sound better using solid state because when I was using the Fortes both both amps, they sounded better using the Eico's as well, even though the Onkyo is a great sounding SS amp).
Thought I would share, as this experiment was a lot of fun, with some definite conclusions about heritage speakers and analog v SS at least.
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Craig,
I don't even know you and it's good to hear from you! I was just more than a bit concerned by your absence from the board, as you are rather a constant poster. While I'm sorry that you had a bad last six weeks (believe me, I'm out on long-term disability, so I kinda know the feeling), I'm really glad to hear that you're OK, as I'm sure a lot of other Klipschers are as well.
Take your time with the info on my HF-85's... I bought another one off of eBay Sunday night and hopefully that will get me by for a while (if I ever hear from the seller).
Look forward to speaking with you sometime in the future,
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I actually sent him an amp this week and according to FedX no one was there to sign for it on the first try.
This gets weirder by the day... it seems a little early for him to go fishing, at least according to the posting on his website from last year, and if he were to be unavailable for any significant time period (and it's been a couple weeks now) I would have thought he would have put a message on his webpage and/or voicemail message and/or e-Mail "out of office" reply.
Weird scenes inside the goldmine indeed...
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Actuially fishing in Ontario for Craig is in May.
I got an e mail from him a week ago.
He does "keep his head down" when he has orders for VRDs. When people order them he works pretty hard to get them built tested and properly packaged quickly.
Thanks AF... my needs may not be as urgent now anyway as I just purchased another HF-85 off of eBay. This one looks and reads good, so keep your fingers crossed... ;-)>
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Last time he emailed me was March 7th, although he didn't respond to my last email from the 10th, although it wan't the kind that required a response. I know he's recently got several VRD new build orders, so he might be busy with with those.
Thanks David... I did leave a voice mail message for him last week, so hopefully he'll get back with me fairly quick. I was just concerned that something may have happened to him, that's the main issue.
One thing's for sure, there is absolutely nothing wrong with having too much business in today's economy, especially in Michigan!
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Thanks Gilbert, that puts my mind at ease.
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I've got a couple HF-85 Eicos that I want to send in to get rebuilt so I sent him an e-Mail over a week ago and left a VM for him earlier this week, but have yet to get a response. There's nothing on the NOSValves webpage that indicates there is a problem. I also checked this Forum and it doesn't look like he's posted since mid February of this year. From the postings I've read by and about him, this seems rather out of character... I hope everything's OK and he's alright.
. As usual stay thru the credits for the extra clips.
Back home with the Belles
in Technical/Restorations
Posted
Thanks More and Derrick! Appreciate the info D, I'm on carpet so the dollys may be less of an issue, but we'll see... I'm going to have to have a pair just to move them in the house anyway.